It was a good thing that I set my alarm for 2PM because I didn’t actually wake up by my own efforts before then! It was another freezing cold day in Chicago. You can imagine what the wind chill factor would be like in the Windy City, eh? Once again, it was far too cold to attempt a mad dash to Victoria’s Secret. Of course, there wasn’t much time for a shopping trip anyway. I was warned that I needed to get to the United Center extra early on account of the fact that it was bobblehead night.
Understatement of the century.
There is a reason they call it The Madhouse. I have NEVER, in my entire extended history of hockey misadventures, stood in such a long and slow moving line to get into an arena! Did I mention how cold it was?? Yeah. Unpleasant. I was beginning to worry that they were going to run out of bobbleheads before I was able to get my hands on one! Luckily, that was not the case, and I’m now the proud owner of a Marian Hossa bobblehead, which will likely live out the rest of its days in the trunk of my car next to the bobblehead I got at Nassau Coliseum (not even sure what player that one bears the likeness of).
People often ask me what the best NHL arena is that I’ve been to. For some reason, I automatically answer this question purely based on the quality of the facility alone. However, I know that a lot of people prefer to rank the rinks based on the atmosphere and the intensity of the crowd. The United Center in Chicago is my nineteenth active National Hockey League rink visited to date. Finally, I have officially visited ALL of the Original Six cities!! Anyway, in terms of atmosphere, the Madhouse takes the cake. The fans are so insane, it makes this Psycho feel like she finally belongs somewhere. They are hardly ever in their seats, and if they are, they are a million times louder than the fans I’ve heard anywhere else. And have you heard the national anthem??! I feel like I definitely need to make a return trip when one of the six Canadian teams are in town, just so I can hear the guy sing my country’s anthem!
What was kind of funny was that I saw more people wearing London Knights jerseys that night than I did when I saw London play in Guelph only a few days before. Naturally, I asked everyone if they were from London, but, to my dismay, they weren’t. I was surprised to discover that the guy sitting next to me, also in a Knights jersey, was actually from my motherland. He and his family were from Brantford (home of the Great One), which is pretty close to my hometown! This wouldn’t be the first time that I’ve been conveniently placed next to other Canadians at hockey arenas far away from home. I have a crazy conspiracy theory that Ticketmaster does that on purpose! Keep the Canadians close together if they managed to make it past clearance at the border. You know how they hate hockey fans (me) coming into their county. I’m on to them…oh, yes!
I was finally getting to see the Duck play again for the first time in a long time, but, unfortunately, most of my fun players were injured and out of the lineup! SAD! Like I mentioned in Day 1, my harrowing adventure the day before was making me question whether the Ducks were really the right team for me. All night I had been racking my brain trying to think of another option. I still wasn’t sure which team should be mine, but one thing became a lot clearer at this game, and that was the fact that the Ducks weren’t it! Nevertheless, I still had a lot of fun, and by that I mean I had a lot of fun with my camera. AHEM! You’re welcome, ladies!
After the Ducks were completely annihilated by the Hawks, I loitered around the arena. I thought it might be a good idea to go for a drive around Chicago and at least check the city out by car before I had to leave the next day. I ducked into the little girls’ room to freshen up before I left. A stupid strand of hair kept sticking up out of place on my forehead. I was annoyed with myself that I didn’t bother to use my straightener before I left for the game that afternoon. Then that sinking feeling of terror hit me. “Shit. Did I turn the straightener off when I decided not to use it?”
It was a race against time to get back to the hotel. I drove like a crazy person knowing that I would likely pull up to the building to find some fire trucks outside and a disapproving look on the doorman’s face. Up in my room, however, it was a false alarm. The straightening iron had been turned off after all. I decided to go back out for my drive around town. It was a Sunday, so everything was closed. Looks like it was going to be another night of hotel room service for dinner! On the plus side, while I was out on my drive, I discovered the exact location of the Victoria’s Secret. My mission was clear.
Roll the credits…
(I know what you’ve been thinking!)
Tags: anaheim ducks, chicago, chicago blackhawks, hockey addicts, hockey fans, road trips
I think I love you, Psycho Lady!
The intensity levels in the United Center are being helped by having one of the best teams in the league — I was there earlier this year and previously was there 3 years ago, the difference was night and day. Chi-town has been deprived of a good team for so many years that the fans are making up for lost time.
Mark my words, there will be a similar effect at the ACC if the Leafs ever have a decent season again.